Air Canada Express will add new U.S. routes with regional jets. (Image: Air Canada/Skyregional)

In international route news, Air Canada and American have both announced plans to expand service between the U.S. and Canada; Aer Lingus comes to Seattle next year; low-cost carriers Norwegian and WOW will increase capacity to the U.S. in 2018; Copa boosts West Coast frequencies; Lufthansa’s Eurowings subsidiary sets more U.S. routes; and Thomas Cook Airlines comes to New York JFK.

Air Canada has unveiled plans to add new service to six U.S. cities next spring, including San Francisco and Sacramento. All the routes will be operated as Air Canada Express, with 76-seat or 50-seat regional jets. On May 1, the airline will kick off daily flights between San Francisco and Edmonton with a 76-seat aircraft, as well as daily Omaha-Toronto service, using a 50-seat plane. May 17 is the launch date for 76-seat regional jet service between Sacramento and Vancouver as well as daily roundtrips between Baltimore/Washington-Montreal and Pittsburgh-Montreal, both served by 50-passenger aircraft. All those routes will operate year-round. Air Canada will also begin seasonal service on May 17 between Providence and Toronto.

American Airlines is also increasing its transborder service to Canada. It will boost its Phoenix-Edmonton schedule from one flight a day to two effective December 15 to April 2. Next spring, American will launch new daily year-round 737 service from its Chicago O’Hare hub to Vancouver starting May 4, and seasonal daily flights from O’Hare to Calgary June 7-September 4, with an American Eagle/Envoy Air E175. On February 15, American will increase frequencies between New York LaGuardia-Toronto from four a day to five, and on May 4 it will boost its Washington Reagan National-Toronto schedule from two flights a day a day to three. Also on May 4, the airline will lay on a third daily roundtrip between Philadelphia and Ottawa.

Ireland’s Aer Lingus, now a part of International Airlines Group along with British Airways and Iberia, will add a new U.S. West Coast gateway next year when it starts Dublin-Seattle service. The carrier plans a May 18 start for the new route, using a 265-passenger, two-class Airbus A330-200 to operate four flights a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday). Passengers flying back to Seattle will be able to pre-clear U.S. Customs at Dublin. Aer Lingus previously announced plans to start Dublin-Philadelphia service four days a week next March.

Faced with new and growing competition from British Airways/Iberia’s Level affiliate, Norwegian plans to increase capacitybetween the U.S. and Barcelona next year by switching to larger aircraft – specifically, from the current 291-passenger 787-8 to the 344-seat 787-9. The changeover will take place in late March, affecting Norwegian’s two weekly flights from Barcelona to Ft. Lauderdale, three flights a week to Los Angeles and Oakland, and four a week to Newark.

Another low-cost carrier – Iceland’s WOW – will also add more U.S. seats next year, increasing frequencies on its route between Newark Liberty International and Reykjavik from seven flights a week to 13, effective May 29 through September 16. That’s in addition to the airline’s new daily flights out of New York JFK starting April 28.

Panama’s Copa Airlines plans to increase its West Coast capacity this winter. The airline will boost its Panama City-San Francisco schedule from twice-daily service to 18 flights a week starting March 1, and its Panama City-Los Angeles frequencies from three a day to 25 a week effective January 2.

When Lufthansa announced its recently-launched New York JFK-Berlin service (taking over for the defunct Airberlin), it said the route would be turned over next summer to Eurowings, its fast-growing, leisure-oriented subsidiary. Now it has even more transatlantic plans for Eurowings. The carrier will start a new route between JFK and Dusseldorf starting April 28, using a Brussels Airlines A340-300 to operate six flights a week. Lufthansa said Eurowings will also begin Dusseldorf-Miami service three times a week as of May 4, and Dusseldorf-Ft. Myers flights three times a week starting May 3.

Thomas Cook Airlines has launched new service between New York JFK and Manchester, operating three flights a week with an Airbus A330 and fares starting as low as $209 one-way – including a checked bag and in-flight meals. And JetBlue will kick off its fourth Caribbean route from Newark next spring, beginning daily service to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic on May 3.

Paris-based low-cost carrier French Blue will begin San Francisco-Tahiti flights in 2018. (Image: French Blue)

In international route developments, a low-cost French airline plans to fly from San Francisco to Tahiti next year; Lufthansa starts a new non-hub route from New York; American targets Iceland in the face of new competition; Iceland’s WOW will add a new U.S. gateway and expand at another; Aeromexico sets a new seasonal Denver route; and Mexico’s Volaris plans more service to California.

A one-year-old French low-cost airline called French Blue – which currently flies from Paris Orly to the island of Reunion in the Indian Ocean – plans to add another long-haul route next year: Paris to Papeete, Tahiti via a stop in San Francisco. The carrier plans to use an Airbus A350-900 on the route, which will begin in May with two flights a week, eventually increasing to three. Currently, the only non-stop service to Tahiti from the U.S. mainland is out of Los Angeles on Air Tahiti Nui, Air France and Qantas. The airline has a website at www.frenchblue.com, although currently it is only in French.

Lufthansa is using an A330 on its new JFK-Berlin Tegel route. (Image: Lufthansa)

Lufthansa last week started its promised new non-stop service from New York JFK to Berlin’s Tegel Airport – bypassing its Frankfurt and Munich hubs — following the recent demise of Airberlin. Lufthansa is using a three-class Airbus A330-300 to fly the route five days a week (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday). It’s the first time in 16 years that the German carrier has operated a long-haul aircraft out of Berlin. Next summer, Lufthansa plans to transfer the JFK-Berlin route to its Eurowings subsidiary.

In recent weeks, new 2018 service from Dallas/Ft. Worth to Reykjavik, Iceland, was announced by both Icelandair and low-cost competitor WOW. And now DFW’s hometown airline is jumping on the Iceland bandwagon as well. American Airlines announced it will operate seasonal daily flights from DFW to Reykjavik from June 7 through October 26, using a 176-seat 757-200.

Wow Air will use an A321 on its new JFK-Iceland route. (Image: Wow Air)

Speaking of WOW, the low-cost Icelandic airline plans to add another U.S. gateway next year, kicking off daily flights to Reykjavik from New York JFK as of April 26. WOW will operate an Airbus A321 on the route. The carrier already offers daily flights out of Newark Liberty International, which will continue. Elsewhere, WOW plans a significant increase in capacity from Baltimore/Washington International next summer, boosting its BWI-Reykjavik schedule from daily departures to 11 flights a week from May 18 through September 16,

Aeromexico, now a joint venture partner of Delta, has been adding more U.S. service as the two coordinate their schedules, and now the Mexican carrier has unveiled plans to revive another U.S. route – but only for a limited time. The carrier said it will offer seasonal service between Denver and Monterrey, but only twice a week (Saturdays and Sundays), and only from December 16 through January 14, using a 76-seat E175. Aeromexico already offers DEN-Mexico City service year-round.

Another Mexican carrier, Volaris, plans to add three California routes next month, but only offering two flights a week on each of them with Airbus single-aisle aircraft. Volaris will start San Jose-Zacatecas flights on December 18, San Jose-Morelia service on December 15, and Fresno-Morelia on December 16.

How you gonna keep ’em down on the farm? Delta will fly Indianapolis-Paris in 2018. (Image: Jim Glab)

Continuing with our route news updates, this time we’ll focus on transatlantic. Delta is adding a pair of non-hub routes to Europe and a new route to Africa; American will introduce some new routes to Europe next year but drop others; British Airways adds a U.S. gateway to Heathrow and some high-density 777 service to Gatwick; Lufthansa ends year-round San Jose flights; United makes an aircraft change on SFO-London; and Iceland’s WOW will fly to more U.S. cities;

Delta has set a May 24, 2018 start for new daily non-stop flights to Paris CDG from … Indianapolis? Yep. It’s not a hub, but Delta does operate 37 fights a day there and has a Sky Club as well. Another new non-hub route for Delta will be the only non-stop service between Orlando and Amsterdam, operating daily starting March 30 of next year. The airline will use 767-300ERs on both routes, with Delta One, Comfort+ and regular economy seating. Delta’s only other international route from Orlando is to Sao Paulo.

On March 24, 2018, Delta will kick off another transatlantic route, from New York JFK to Lagos, Nigeria. The carrier already flies to Lagos from Atlanta four times a week, and the JFK flights will operate three times a week (eastbound on Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday). That route will get an Airbus A330-200 with lie-flat Delta One seats as well as Comfort+ and regular economy.

Look for some changes in American Airlines’ transatlantic summer schedules next year. The airline has announced it will add new daily seasonal service May 4-October 27 from Philadelphia to both Prague and Budapest, using 767-300s; and from Chicago O’Hare to Venice with a 787-8. (American already flies to Venice from Philadelphia.) According to schedule updates in Routesonline.com, American also plans to add daily service starting March 25 from Philadelphia to Zurich, a route it last served in September 2016. Seasonal service getting the ax from AA next year, effective March 25, includes Boston-Paris, JFK-Zurich and JFK-Manchester.

British Airways will use a Dreamliner on its new route to Nashville. (Image: British Airways)

Nashville hasn’t had non-stop flights to London since the 1980s, but it will get them again on May 4, 2018, when British Airways is due to begin five flights a weekto Heathrow from the Music City with a 787-8 Dreamliner. Tennessee is reportedly offering BA incentives worth $1.5 million to fly the route. From Philadelphia, meanwhile, British Airways will boost its LHR schedule from seven flights a week to 10 starting in April with the addition of second departures on Mondays, Fridays and Sundays, also with a 787-8. And on May 8, BA will replace one of its two daily 747-400 flights between Chicago O’Hare and London with an Airbus A380 – the first regularly-scheduled A380 service at O’Hare.

British Airways has also been converting some of its 777-200ERs to a higher-density configuration to compete with low-cost competition like Norwegian from London Gatwick, and it will put the aircraft onto some U.S. routes next year. The three-class 777s will have 32 business class seats, 52 in premium economy and 252 in regular economy. They’ll fly once a week to Gatwick from Ft. Lauderdale starting September 13, daily from New York JFK beginning July 8, once or twice a week from Orlando as of May 11, and twice a week from Tampa starting June 7. BA will also beef up its Las Vegas service on March 27, adding three weekly Las Vegas-London Gatwick 777 flights a week to its 11 weekly LAS-LHR flights.

Lufthansa uses an A340-300 on its San Jose-Frankfurt route. (Image: BriYYZ/Wikimedia Commons)

The San Jose-Frankfurt non-stops introduced last year by Lufthansa will no longer operate year-round. The German carrier had been planning to keep flying the route five times a week, but now has decided to scrap the service for the winter. The SJC-FRA A340-300 flights will be suspended from October 29 through March 24.

Flying United from San Francisco to London? From October 28 through December 19, United plans to make an equipment change on the route. Instead of using 777-200ERs on both daily departures, it will switch one of them (UA900/901) to a 787-9.

Iceland’s ultra-low-cost WOW Air plans to add service from more U.S. cities next spring, offering four Airbus A321 flights a week to Reykjavik (with connections to lots of European cities) from Detroit starting April 26, from Cleveland May 4, from Cincinnati May 10 and from St. Louis May 17. The carrier will also begin Dallas/Ft. Worth service May 24 with three flights a week. One-way fares on the new routes will start as low as $99 (with plenty of extra fees for various amenities and services).

Delta will use a 777-200LR for its new Atlanta-Shanghai flights. (Image: Delta)

In international route developments, Delta announces a major new transpacific flight and a Mexico route; Saudi Arabian Airlines is the last carrier to be relieved of the laptop ban; Cathay Pacific introduces a new way to upgrade; WOW enters a Midwest market; and United trims some Europe service.

Delta’s three existing U.S. gateways for non-stop flights to Shanghai (Los Angeles, Seattle and Detroit) will be joined by a fourth next year when the airline launches the only non-stop service to Shanghai from Atlanta. Set to begin in July 2018, the new route will allow passengers to connect to more than 50 destinations beyond Shanghai via Delta code-share partner China Eastern Airlines. Delta currently offers two other transpacific non-stop routes from Atlanta, to Seoul and Tokyo. The airline said it will fly the new Shanghai route with a 777-200LR that has 37 Delta One lie-flat seats, 36 seats in Delta Comfort+ and 218 in regular economy.

Although its new joint venture partner Aeromexico already has several flights a day between Los Angeles and Mexico City, Delta plans to begin its own once-a-day service in that market on December 1. Delta will use an A319 on the route, with a 9:30 a.m. departure from LAX, and plenty of connections available at MEX on Aeromexico.

Speaking of Mexico, Alaska Air’s expansion in the US-to-Mexico market is resulting in some pretty amazing deals. For example with its new MexiCaliRica sale, nonstop roundtrips between Los Angeles or San Francisco and Mexico City are running as cheap as $220 round trip for late August and fall flights. Seattle to Mexico City is just $320 round trip. LAX to Los Cabos is just $240 round trip. Fall is a perfect time to visit Mexico as it cools off and prices tumble. Fares are available on Alaska Air as well as other carriers such as Aeromexico, Delta, United and Volaris on these routes.

The U.S. “laptop ban” is now over, as Saudi Arabian Airlines has become the last carrier to have the ban lifted. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said recently that airlines and airports that complied with new, tougher inspection standards could be relieved of the ban – although any airline/airport worldwide that didn’t also increase security practices to meet those new standards could have a laptop ban imposed. This could create some new inconveniences for travelers, however – e.g., CNN said this week that Mexican aviation authoritiesare now advising passengers on U.S.-bound flights to show up at the airport three hours in advance so their personal electronic devices can be subjected to more stringent inspections. The U.S. ban against carrying laptops and tablets into the passenger cabin was issued in March against carriers operating non-stop flights to the U.S. from 10 airports in the Middle East and North Africa.

Cathay Pacific has introduced a new Upgrade Bid program that lets passengers make cash offers for an upgrade to a business class or premium economy seat. Persons who book through the airline’s website will see an Upgrade Bid eligibility notification on their booking confirmation page, where they can make their best offer for a better seat – although they can change or rescind it up to 50 hours before departure. Successful bidders will be notified by email two or three days in advance. The only U.S. route where the program is currently offered is Chicago-Hong Kong; it is also available on several other routes out of Hong Kong including Amsterdam, Bangkok, Dubai, Rome and Seoul.

Wow Air flies an A321 on its new Chicago O’Hare-Iceland route. (Image: Wow Air)

Iceland’s low-cost carrier WOW Air has started service from another U.S. gateway, operating four flights a week from Chicago O’Hare to Reykjavik, where passengers can connect to major European cities. Frequencies will increase to six a week during August. The carrier is using an A321 on the route

United is planning some changes to its Europe service later this year, all on routes operated with 757s from the carrier’s Newark hub. On October 5, United will discontinue its daily service from Newark to Birmingham, England, and its year-round flights from Newark to destinations in Scotland and Ireland will be changed to seasonal service. Newark-Glasgow flights will be suspended from October 28 to May 3, and Newark-Shannon service will be suspended from November 25 to March 8.

In international route developments, United puts more aircraft with its new Polaris business cabin into service from San Francisco; San Diego gets new Europe service from two carriers; Hainan Airlines plans a New York route; and WOW adds another U.S. gateway.

United Airlines has taken delivery of more 777-300ERs equipped with its new Polaris international business class seat, and it is putting them into service. The airline is focusing on transpacific flights out of San Francisco for the new planes. This week, it put a new Polaris-equipped 777-300ER into service between San Francisco and Tokyo Narita, and another is due to start flying later this month from SFO to Taipei. United already uses the 777-300ER on its San Francisco-Hong Kong and Newark-Tel Aviv routes.

Lufthansa will out an A380 onto its Los Angeles-Munich route. (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Lufthansa has some big plans for California in 2018. For one thing, the airline said it will begin service next summer between San Diego and Frankfurt. It will operate five flights a week on the route, but it didn’t say what kind of aircraft it would use. Meanwhile, Lufthansa is planning to shift five of its 14 Airbus A380 super-jumbos from Frankfurt to Munich next year, and it will put one of them onto its Munich-Los Angeles route next summer, where it currently uses an A340. Lufthansa currently uses an A380 for one of its two daily LAX-Frankfurt flights.

Last week, another airline started flying from San Diego to Europe: Edelweissis operating two flights a week (Mondays and Fridays) from SAN to Zurich. The seasonal service will continue through September 18, using a two-class, 314-passenger A340-300. What is Edelweiss? It’s a sister company of Swiss International Air Lines (and thus part of the Lufthansa family) that concentrates on the leisure market.

Speaking of Lufthansa, the German carrier is reportedly planning to try out a new pricing concept for long-haul trips through its European hubs. It’s called a “flexible routing” fare, and persons who buy it would get a discount in exchange for agreeing to let Lufthansa change their flight and routing from a connection through Frankfurt to one at another Lufthansa-family hub like Munich, Vienna or Zurich. The point is to give the airline more flexibility in steering traffic away from Frankfurt, where operating costs are higher, and still get the passenger from his desired point A to point B.

China’s Hainan Airlines has filed a schedule to start service this fall between New York JFK and Chongqing. The carrier is planning to offer two flights a week beginning October 20, using a two-class 787-8.

A Wow Air A321 (Image: Wow Air)

Iceland’s low-cost WOW Air continues its U.S. growth. This week, WOW started flying from Pittsburgh to Reykjavik , with one-way base fares starting as low as $99 (plus ancillary fees for everything from carrying on a bag to selecting a seat assignment in advance). Onward connections are available at Reykjavik to several European cities. WOW will fly the route five days a week, using a 220-passenger A321. Next month, WOW is due to add Chicago O’Hare to its route map.

In international route news, Virgin Atlantic starts a pair of west coast routes; Delta resumes a transatlantic route and adds a South American one; Iceland’s WOW brings its low-fare service to the Midwest; American puts a new cabin class on sale; Emirates scales back at LAX but British Airways grows there; United starts two seasonal routes to Rome; Finnair drops a U.S. gateway; and Copa doubles down at O’Hare.

Virgin Atlantic Airways this week kicked off its new service to Seattle, using a 787-9 for its daily flights to London Heathrow. Virgin’s operations in the U.S. are closely coordinated with joint venture partner Delta, and Virgin’s new Seattle service replaces Delta’s daily flight to London. Delta was using a 767, so Virgin’s 787-9 increases capacity on the route by 50 seats a day. Also this week, Virgin Atlantic introduced new seasonal service from San Francisco International to Manchester, using an A330-300. That route operates three days a week (Tuesday, Friday and Sunday). It’s the only SFO-Manchester non-stop service, but it won’t be for long: On May 14, U.K. leisure carrier Thomas Cook Airlines will begin two flights a week with an A330-200. All this is in addition to British Airways four daily nonstops from the Bay Area to London!

Delta will fly to the beaches of Rio from JFK starting in December (Image: VisitBrazil.com)

Delta will expand its South America reach later this year with new daily service between New York JFK and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, slated to launch December 21. Using a 210-passenger 767-300 with Delta One flatbed seats, Delta will offer onward connections at Rio to 23 Brazilian destinations thanks to its Brazilian partner GOL. Meanwhile, Delta this week resumed service on the Atlanta-Brussels route, flying five times a week (increasing to daily during summer) with a 767-400. Delta had suspended the route a year ago after the Brussels terror attacks, although it maintained daily flights to Brussels from JFK.

On July 13, Icelandic low-cost carrier WOW will add another U.S. gateway, starting service four days a week to Reykjavik from Chicago O’Hare. The carrier said it is offering one-way base fares starting as low as $99 (plus extras) from ORD to Iceland, or $149 for connections to major European capitals. The flights will operate Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays using an A321-300 with 30-inch seat pitch (or 34 inches for an additional fee).

American’s new premium economy seating is on 787-9s in select markets. (Image: American Airlines).

American Airlines’ new international premium economy seats, currently available on a few routes out of Dallas/Ft. Worth, have been used for upgrades during their rollout. But now the airline is putting the new cabin category on sale for travel beginning May 4. AA’s premium economy class is on its new 787-9s from DFW to Paris, Madrid, Sao Paulo and Seoul. Seats are 19 inches wide with 38 inches of pitch (vs. 33-34 inches in Main Cabin Extra) in a 2-3-2 layout.

Is that U.S. laptop ban starting to hurt business for the big Middle Eastern carriers? Routesonline.com reports that Emirates is “temporarily adjusting” its schedule between Los Angeles and Dubai, cutting service from two flights a day to one from May 1 through June 30.

But Routesonline.com says that British Airways is planning an increased schedule from LAX to London Heathrow, bringing on a third daily flight effective October 29. The additional frequency will use a 787-9. On the same date, BA will boost its New Orleans-LHR schedule from four flights a week to five. Meanwhile, BA this week introduced its biggest bird – the 469-passenger A380-800 – into the aircraft mix on its Boston-London route, where the giant jet operates Mondays and Fridays.

United’s seasonal international schedule adjustments start to kick in next week. On April 4, the carrier will begin seasonal service from Newark to Rome and from Washington Dulles to Rome, both using 767s. The Newark flights continue through November 8, while the Dulles schedule is in place through October 27. Also on April 4, United will lay on extra frequencies from Newark to Paris, Dublin and London.

Trying to get from Miami to Helsinki this summer? Forget Finnair, which is suspending service on that route from May 1 through September 30, according to Routesonline.com. The Finnish carrier is also cutting back Chicago-Helsinki frequencies from five flights a week to three.

Panama’s Copa Airlines is doubling its service from Chicago O’Hare to Panama City effective June 1, when it will supplement its existing daily morning departure with a midafternoon flight out of ORD. Copa has onward service from its Panama City hub to 50 destinations in Latin America.

Over the last year there have been numerous TravelSkills posts about WOW Air and its ultra-low fares from the US to Europe. Until now we’ve only wondered what the experience might be like. But this week reader Jason Vaudrey submitted the following Reader Report describing his experience. Read it, and let us know if you’d take the plunge on WOW Air, too!

In mid-February, I flew WOW Air in economy class to Reykjavik (KEF) and met up with a friend and explored South Iceland. WOW Air began nonstop service from SFO this past year using an Airbus 330-200. On this widebody there are 319 economy class seats and 23 roomier XL seats.

My baseline fare was about $220 each way, but I ended up spending about $650 total roundtrip when you add in the extra fees. I reserved a specific seat which cost an additional $14 each way. I paid $71 each way to check my bag. I probably spent about $50 on inflight food and beverages (wine). I did not pay the $50 fee for my carry on because it was small enough to fit under the seat. [Currently, WOW is promoting base fares as now as $260 roundtrip for spring trips from both SFO and LAX.]

Flight time on SFO-KEF is about eight hours. I departed on Monday, February 13 at 11:20am and arrived to Reykjavik (KEF) on Tuesday, February 14 at 4:00am. On the return, I departed Reykjavik at 4:00pm and arrived to San Francisco at 5:10pm on the same day. There is an 8-hour difference between the west coast of the U.S. and Iceland.

I chose seat 5C outbound and on the return I sat in 5H. Both were aisle seats, but I noticed that 5C could not fit my backpack under the seat easily while 5H stored it very easily. And there was no metal box underneath the seat in front of me that would have prevented this from happening.

I also felt that on the return there was greater seat pitch. The WOW Air website indicates that there is 31 inches of seat pitch in economy, but it felt like the seat pitch was greater, even in 5C. WOW Air also offers 23 XL seats at the front of the plane with 34 inches of pitch. Here’s the WOW Air A330 seatmap from SeatGuru.com

The check-in process at SFO is smooth and they weigh all checked luggage at SFO, so that they confirm you paid the proper amount. They also tag your carry-on bag at the check-in counter and verify it at the gate, to indicate to the cabin crew that the bag will need to be placed underneath the seat in front of you.

Despite the vigilance of the ground staff, the cabin crew did not seem to care if you stored your bag in the overhead lockers, as I did with my backpack and many other passengers did, too. Unlike most flights, where there is a battle for overhead bin space, this was a non-issue on both flights.

There is no seatback entertainment system, but upon takeoff the cabin crew offers iPads for $16 that have movies available and there is an electrical outlet to charge your devices, but only one, so you will need to share with your seatmate. I did not rent an iPad, so I was unsure as to what was offered on them. No USB ports or wi-fi are available on board the airplane.

Chicken salad pre-ordered for flight from KEF back to SFO (Photo: Jason Vaudrey)

There are charges for all beverages and snacks— there’s a plentiful selection and comparable with prices that you would pay for the same food in Iceland. They offer alcoholic beverages and a variety of specialty sandwiches for flights from LAX and SFO.

Online you may order food and prepay for the food for flights leaving Reykjavik, but preordering food for flights from SFO or any US destination is not available. If you are connecting in Reykjavik, you can pre-order food, but you will not receive it on your flight from SFO, but rather your connecting flight departing Reykjavik. I had pre-ordered a chicken salad on my return which was $16 and it was delicious.

Inflight food for purchase on WOW Air (Image: WOW Air)

Yes, a bottle of water is $3, so make sure to fill your water bottle at SFO prior to boarding. And no, they do not charge to use the lavatory.

The cabin crew brought out the beverage/food cart after takeoff offering a wide array of beverages and things to eat. Afterward they come around and offer duty free items. You may purchase alcohol on board and it might be wise to consider making a purchase (see below on alcohol in Iceland).

Throughout the flight, attendants encourage you to use your call button, and they are happy to bring you any item you need along with their mobile credit card machine (they do not accept cash). In fact, most places in Iceland have similar mobile devices and that worked out well.

Pleasant flight crew on WOW Air (Photo Jason Vaudrey)

After it was all said and done, I spent approximately $650 for my ticket purchased in the beginning of December for my trip in mid-February. And compared with Icelandair at $950, which would involve flying Alaska Airlines up to Seattle and connecting at Sea-Tac, I think the nonstop 8-hour flight on Wow Air is worth it. The employees (airport personnel, cabin crew, and pilots) were friendly and professional, the aircraft was extremely clean, plenty of items to purchase and items to satisfy both your hunger and entertainment needs.

There were approximately 100 seats empty on the outbound and 40 seats empty on the return flight. I went on Wow Air with the mindset that it was a budget carrier and I would have to pay for everything, and it worked out well.

The cabin crews on both flights were attentive, nice, and showed great hospitality. The seats were firm, but comfortable and the recline was decent. The lever for the seat recline was underneath the seat, as opposed to a button that you depress on the armrest. I managed to sleep four hours going to Reykjavik.

Relaxing in the Secret Lagoon on a Sunday afternoon in Fluoir about 100km from Reykjavik (Photo: Jason Vaudrey)

One important note: In Iceland, alcohol is sold only at government owned stores named Vinbudin. In fact, Wow Air has a page describing the history of alcohol in Iceland and the rules surrounding it. The cost for alcohol along with most items, is extremely expensive and taxed heavily, so stock up on alcohol upon landing in their duty free before exiting arrivals!

We were there a week and chose to rent a car and explore southern Iceland, used Reykjavik as a base, and took day trips around southern Iceland. It is easy to get around, and the roads are well maintained. If that is not comfortable, day excursions can be planned easily in central Reykjavik on their main road: Laugauvegur.

Day trips are expensive and if you want to visit the infamous Blue Lagoon, book a reservation online early. We opted for the Secret Lagoon in Fluoir, which was not so much a secret, about 100 km from Reykjavik. It was wonderful. Many people were there, but it was not overwhelming and very enjoyable.

In February, the sun rises approximately at 9:30am and the sun sets about 6:00pm. The weather was not too bad and we were very fortunate, because upon leaving, it was forecast to snow.

Iceland is gorgeous and breathtaking. If you go in winter, seeing the Northern Lights is incredible. A quick trip just outside of Reykjavik and away from the light pollution of the city, you can witness it. We were fortunate to be able to view the Northern Lights one night when we realized how clear the sky was after returning from dinner in Reykjavik. But other than that, it was overcast each night.

Icelandic low-cost carrier WOW Air will be adding a new business-travel-friendly option for West Coast travelers this summer: premium seating.

The new section (called “Big Seats”) is going into WOW’s A330s on its routes to Reykjavik from San Francisco, Los Angeles and Miami, probably starting on some aircraft by June 1, according to Conde Nast.

The section will offer 37-inch pitch (vs. 31 in regular economy), and fares for the premium seats will include carry-on bags, checked bags, in-flight food service and priority boarding – as opposed to its regular economy pricing, which includes nothing but the ride and a single under-the-seat personal item. Other amenities and services all incur extra fees. The airline has not yet indicated what level of premium passengers will pay for the premium seating, which will be sold as “WOW Biz.”

However, the carrier is also said to be planning a new fare category called WOW Plus, which will buy a regular economy seat, a carry-on for the overhead bin, a single checked bag, and cancellation protection.

As the airline continues its U.S. expansion, offering very-low-cost base fares from the U.S. to Iceland and to points in Europe via a Reykjavik connection, it appears to be broadening its marketing to appeal to business travelers as well as backpackers.

Have you flown WOW Air yet? Would you? Please leave your comments below.

See video below- and find out how much it costs to check a surf board on WOW Air (Image: WOW Air)

After launching flights between California and Iceland earlier this year, WOW air recently teamed up with pro surfer Anastasia Ashley to find out if it’s possible to surf in both Los Angeles and Iceland within 24 hours. The journey began in Malibu where Anastasia set out on a race against the clock to be the first person to surf in both California and Iceland within 24 hours.

Asked about the challenge, Anastasia replied “I’m an avid world traveler, so literally going around the world in one day on a surf adventure, was a challenge that was meant for me!”

WOW air’s camera crew followed Anastasia every step of the way to document the experience and share with the world.

After landing in Iceland, Anastasia faced an adventurous drive through Southern Iceland with dramatic scenery. When arriving at the Icelandic surf spot at Vík í Myrdal, nothing could have prepared her for the extreme weathers conditions and breathtaking Icelandic scenery surrounding her. WOW air’s surfer guide and safety specialist, Bjarki Thorlaksson owner of Adventure Vikings, was there to guide on all safety aspects of the journey. Anastasia didn’t let the extreme contrast between sunny California and arctic Iceland stop her and faced the unforgiving nature head on.

The challenge was completed with 17 minutes to spare, in only 23 hours and 43 minutes. “Being able to surf in LA and Iceland within the 24 hours sounds like a dream day to me. I even got time to hit the Blue Lagoon after!” said Anastasia when looking back on this adventure.

WOW Air is using this cool video to promote it’s $99 fares between SFO and LAX and Iceland. Great fares, but just be sure you know about all or Wow Air’s extra fees before you buy! For example, Anastasia would have paid an extra $200 round trip to check that pink surfboard!

The latest international route developments include American’s launch of a new transpacific route, along with its plans to add some flights to Europe and cancel others; Air India boosting San Francisco frequencies; Royal Air Maroc adding a new U.S. gateway; a new SFO route from a U.K. carrier; increased service between Boston and Hong Kong; a European carrier adding Miami service; and new U.S. routes from Air Canada and Aeromexico.

American Airlines last week kicked off its new non-stop daily service between Los Angeles International and Hong Kong, a 15-hour trip with an unfortunate LAX departure time of 1:55 a.m. American also code-shares with Oneworld partner Cathay Pacific’s three daily LAX-Hong Kong flights. American is using a three-class 777-300ER on the route; it also flies to Hong Kong from its Dallas/Ft. Worth hub.

Across the Atlantic, American plans to add a trio of new routes next spring, and to cancel some others. May 5 is the starting date for new daily AA service from Chicago O’Hare to Barcelona, using a 787-8; from Dallas/Ft. Worth to Amsterdam, with a 767-300ER; and DFW to Rome, using a 777-200ER. The airline will discontinue its New York JFK-Birmingham 757 service effective January 6, and will not operate the seasonal summer service it had previously offered from Chicago to Dusseldorf, Philadelphia to Brussels, and Philadelphia to Zurich. Meanwhile, American will also change aircraft this winter on two routes out of DFW, replacing 777-200ERs with 787-9s on flights to Paris starting January 9 and to Seoul as of February 16.

Air India uses a 777-200 on its San Francisco route. (Image: Peter Biaggi/SFO)

Air India started flying between San Francisco and Delhi last December, with three flights a week. But now it plans a big change in that route, one that will let it increase frequencies to six a week. The schedule increase takes effect November 21. Air India will still use a 777-200LR, but will change the flight from a transatlantic one to a transpacific routing. Although the transpacific distance between the cities is longer than the current routing, the flight time from Delhi to SFO is expected to be reduced by three hours due to strong tailwinds on the eastbound sector.

Moroccan carrier Royal Air Maroc has added its third North American gateway, launching new service last week between Casablanca and Washington Dulles. The airline also flies to New York JFK and Montreal. Royal Air Maroc is using a 787 Dreamliner on the Dulles route, which departs Washington three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Virgin Atlantic will be getting a little competition on the new San Francisco-Manchester route that it announced last spring. Virgin will fly the route three times a week starting next summer, using an A330. Now Thomas Cook Airlines, a leisure-oriented U.K. carrier, says it will also fly between SFO and Manchester, operating two flights a week starting in May 2017. The carrier already flies to six other U.S. cities from Manchester.

Cathay Pacific, which started flying from Hong Kong to Boston last year with four flights a week, announced plans to expand that schedule to daily non-stops beginning on March 27. The carrier uses a 777-300ER on the route, with first class, business class, premium economy and regular economy seating.

WOW Air will use an A330 on its new Miami-Reykjavik route. (Image: WOW Air)

WOW, the Icelandic ultra-low-cost airline, plans to add Miami as its next U.S. gateway. The carrier will use an Airbus A330 to begin service April 5 between Miami and Reykjavik, offering one-way fares to Iceland starting at $99 and connecting fares to European capitals starting at $149 – plus add-ons, of course.

In North America, Air Canada said it will begin new service on February 5 linking Vancouver with Dallas/Ft. Worth, operating a daily 75-seat CRJ-705 flight under the Air Canada Express brand. And on November 17, Aeromexico will start flying four days a week between Mexico City and Austin, using a 76-seat Embraer 170.

Over the last few years, travelers welcomed a new type of airline known as “ultra-low-cost carriers” or, in travel industry parlance, “ULCCs.”

You may have never heard of many of these airlines, but they are a key reason we’ve seen airfares come down this year. When a ULCC enters a market, major airlines usually pay attention and lower fares accordingly.

While ULCCs have been around a while, I still frequently hear from readers who are shocked SHOCKED to discover all the extra fees that come with those ultra-low fares. This include nearly everything from drinks and meals to carry-on bags and advance seat selection. Some even charge to print a boarding pass if you did not do it at home.

Here’s one of the most recent reader letters. Take a read and let me know what you think. Is it okay for a ULCC to charge for a bottle of water? Please leave your comments below.

Dear Mr. McGinnis,

As an expert traveler, blogger, and columnist who has written extensively about traveling and has been an advisor to frequent travelers at SFGATE, you were the person I thought of, who could address in your columns the risks of flying with a low-cost airline.

I would like to share with you my experience regarding a recent flight that I took on August 23rd on a low-cost carrier called WOW airlines, an Icelandic airline (wowair.com) from San Francisco to Paris. I decided to fly on this airline because the cost of the ticket was a lot cheaper than on other airlines ($760 round trip + $77 to check a bag). At the time, I was aware that flying with WOW meant that items such as food and beverages were not complimentary. [Currently, WOW Air is promoting fares as low as $440 roundtrip between SFO and Iceland for fall trips. From the east coast, fares are as low as $239 round trip. That is CHEAP!]

I have experienced this when traveling on other low-cost airlines in Europe such as EasyJet. I didn’t mind this, seeing as the duration of the flights were usually short, i.e. no longer than three hours.

However, I had assumed that on longer flights, the airline would provide passengers with food and beverages free of charge. I was stunned when I discovered that on the first leg of the flight from San Francisco to Keflavik, the main airport in Iceland, food and beverages were not complimentary. This was after all an 8-hour flight! I believe that flights that are transatlantic and longer than six hours, should provide at least some food to their passengers.

Wow Air offers roundtrip fares as low as $440 between SFO and Iceland

While I wasn’t thrilled about this, I told myself that this is the way low-cost airlines work. If I pay less, then, this is to be expected.

What I did not expect was having to pay for water on this flight! I had taken a water bottle with me and had drunk all of it. When I asked if I could refill my water bottle, the flight attendant came back with a water bottle and a portable credit card machine. She told me that it cost three dollars to buy the water bottle.

I was shocked. How could they charge for water? It’s a basic need! Plus, the cost was ridiculously high for a water bottle. I told her that I just wanted to fill the bottle with water, but she replied that they only had water bottles.

I refused to pay. This was really beyond the pale. How could a flight not have water readily available to its passengers? What if there was an emergency and a passenger needed to drink water ASAP? Would they charge him/her, too? Because I didn’t want to pay for water, I didn’t drink anything for several hours until I arrived in Paris.

When I came home, I wrote to the airline to inform them that I was very displeased with the fact that they charge for food and beverages, especially water on an 8-hour transatlantic flight. Soon after I wrote them, I looked at reviews of the airline online only to discover that it received scathing reviews due to poor customer service and its tendency to lose luggage, have significant delays, and be unavailable or unhelpful to passengers when they needed information about their flight.

I received yesterday a reply from WOW. Here it is:

Replied on Thursday August 25th:

Dear L,

Thank you for getting in touch with us. We are firm believers in the business model “you pay for what you use”. We are a low-budget airline so all extra services are not included in the ticket price and come for an additional charge.

We believe it’s unfair for our guests to pay for something they have no intention of using. That is why you are allowed to choose what you pay for, you do not pay for anything you do not use.

Feel free to write back should you have any more questions!

Have a nice day.

Kind regards,BrietWOW air

I found this answer unacceptable and appalling. As a result, I deemed it important to inform the community of travelers about this airline and its treatment of its passengers. By sharing our stories with travel experts and advisors, we can show that this kind of behavior is unacceptable and, in my view, amoral. I believe that low-cost airlines should be held accountable for the way they operate and treat their passengers.

Thank you very much for having taken the time to read this.

Kind regards,LG

So readers, what do you think? Is it okay for an ultra-low-cost carrier to charge $3 for a bottle of water? Would you pay for it?

European carrier Norwegian has unveiled plans to add three more new U.S. routes this summer, the latest blow in an escalating assault by low-cost transatlantic airlines on the industry’s established players.

Using new 787 Dreamliners, Norwegian says it will begin flying July 29 to Paris Charles de Gaulle from New York JFK, Los Angeles and Ft. Lauderdale, with introductory off-peak fares starting at $175 one-way. Fares in peak summer months will be about twice as much.

Norwegian’s newest foray into the U.S. market comes only two months after it announced plans to start flying from Oakland to London Gatwick on May 12 with fares starting at $299 one way. It already flies from Oakland to Stockholm and Olso, and from Los Angeles to Gatwick and Scandinavia, and will begin five weekly Boston-Gatwick flights on March 27. Also on tap for Boston: a few flights a week to Copenhagen and Olso, and in May, service from Boston to Cork, Ireland. The low-cost carrier already flies from New York to Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm and London Gatwick.

Many roundtrips to Europe from NYC are sub-$500 for summer trips (Image: Kayak Calendar)

Many summertime fares from SFO to Europe are still sub-$1,000 (Image: Kayak)

Meanwhile, Iceland-based Wow – another low-cost specialist – last year started flying to Reykjavik from Boston and Baltimore-Washington with fares starting as low as $99 one way. And this June, it will add flights to Reykjavik from Los Angeles and San Francisco starting at that same $99 rate, using Airbus A330s. Wow also has connecting service to European cities for fares as low as $199 each way from the U.S.

For both airlines, frequencies from their U.S. gateways vary by route; they could be as few as one or two a week, ranging up to daily. And the base fares they quote can be misleading: While they include taxes, they do not include all the miscellaneous add-on charges that proliferate on low-cost airlines, and the lowest rates are capacity-restricted.

Still, even with the extras, they can represent a significant savings over the legacy transatlantic airlines. It will be interesting to see whether and how the established carriers respond to the interlopers’ low-fare tactics.

We are already seeing some new competitive discounts from the likes of Aer Lingus and Turkish Airlines, so keep an eye on those airlines, too. For example, checking Google’s flight maps, we are still seeing peak season summer round trips between the West Coast and Europe in the $1100 range, which is quite a deal for July. From the East Coast, they are still sub-$1,000 in July and around $500 in early June.

Do you plan to go to Europe this year? If so, how much would you expect to pay for a round trip from your home airport? Please leave your comments below.

Skúli Mogensen, the founder and CEO of WOW Air was in California this week promoting new flights (Photo: WOW Air)

$99 one-way fares from California to Europe? Fares are highly restricted, but yep, they are there… and available for a handful of June flights from San Francisco and Los Angeles.

One of the newest low-fare transatlantic carriers to fly to the U.S. is Iceland’s Wow Air. Over the last year it has introduced nonstops between Reykjavik and Boston and Baltimore/Washington at similar bargain basement fares.

WOW Air is an ultra-low-cost carrier that makes its money from ancillary passenger fees– for example, you are only allowed a carry-on bag of up to 11 pounds. If it weighs more than that, you’ll pay a fee of $48 each way. If you want to check a bag you’ll pay a stiff $67 fee each way. To choose a seat ahead of time, you’ll pay between $10 and $48, depending on legroom. See this for the full list of extra fees.

Nonetheless, those $99 one-way fares are hard to resist. But you won’t find a $99 fare on the return leg. To get back, the cheapest one-way fare is $199, making round trips $398.

Flight time between San Francisco or LAX and Reykjavik is nine hours and the carrier will use a wide-body Airbus A330-300 on the route that has 340 seats onboard. Seat pitch ranges from 30 to 34 inches.

The $99 fares will get you to Iceland (one of the world’s hottest destinations right now), but you can stop over in Reykjavik and continue on to other European cities (such as London, Paris, Berlin, Frankfurt, Dublin, Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Stockholm) for as little as $199 one way.

With a required change of planes in Iceland, this is not your average business traveler’s airline.

Still, if you are headed to Iceland, have some extra time to get to Europe, or just want to be the first on your block to fly Wow Air, it does have an interesting twist on seating: Although all its aircraft are one-class, you can decide how much legroom you want — paying extra for more, of course.

WOW Air A330 (Image: WOW Air)

The website jaunted.com recently tried out Wow Air’s service, and found that its regular seating on the A321s it flies from the East Coast have a knee crunching 30-inch pitch. But travelers can opt up to “L seats” with 33 inches for an extra $24, or even more to “XL” seats with 35-inch pitch for a $33 premium. The reporter noted that since most of the passengers were apparently budget-focused, her XL seat choice gave her a row all to herself.

Inaugural flights from San Francisco start on on June 9th and in Los Angeles starting on June 15th.

SFO to Iceland nonstops will be available five days a week; from LAX, four days a week with connecting flights on to other European destinations. The $99 deal from SFO is only good on June 10, 17 and 24 and on Saturdays between September 24 and November 19.

From LAX, the $99 deal is only good on June 21 or 28, or on Tuesdays between September 27 and November. The $199 fares for continuing flights to Europe are similarly restricted.

Launched in November 2011, WOW air now connects twenty-seven destinations across the U.S. and Europe with the Icelandic capital.

American will use a 787 on its new LAX-Tokyo Haneda route. (Image: American)

International route news this week includes American revealing its plans for new Los Angeles-Tokyo flights, an Icelandic budget airline expanding to San Francisco and Los Angeles, Air Canada adding new long-haul destinations, Emirates casting its eye at an available U.S. gateway and Alaska starting service to Costa Rica.

American Airlines has set February 11 as the launch date for new daily, year-round non-stops between Los Angeles International and Tokyo’s close-in Haneda Airport; it will take bookings beginning November 8. American said it will use a 787-8 with business class, Main Cabin Extra and regular economy seating, and equipped with satellite Wi-Fi. American got the route authority after Delta agreed to give up its Seattle-Tokyo Haneda service (although it still flies Seattle-Tokyo Narita, and American and partner Japan Airlines both fly from LAX to Tokyo Narita). It will be the second new transpacific route for American in three months; AA starts its new LAX-Sydney non-stops on December 17.

Looking for a cheap way to get from the West Coast to Europe — or Iceland? Reykjavik-based discount carrier WOW Air said it plans to begin flying to both San Francisco and Los Angeles next summer, although it didn’t give an exact starting date. The carrier said it will fly to LAX four times a week and to San Francisco five times a week, using a one-class, 340-passenger A330-300. WOW already operates from Boston and Washington to Iceland’s Keflavik Airport (and will add Toronto and Montreal flights in May 2016), with connections to various European cities. No word on fares yet, but the carrier’s website (www.wowair.us) currently shows basic one-way connecting prices as low as $149 from Boston or Washington to London Gatwick — plus ancillary fees, of course.

Air Canada is adding long-haul international services left and right. This week, it started flying non-stop from Toronto to Delhi, India four times a week, along with new non-stops three times a week from Toronto to Dubai. On both routes, Air Canada is using 787-9s with business, premium economy and economy class seating. The Canadian carrier also plans to resume Toronto-Seoul Incheon service on June 17, 2016, using a 787-8; it last flew the seasonal route in 2013.

Now that Delta has angrily announced its exit from the Atlanta-Dubai route effective February 11, blaming the big Mideast airlines for laying on excessive capacity to the U.S., Emirates has its eye on the route. The Dubai-based airline also dismissed Delta’s claim that it couldn’t successfully compete in the market, estimating that Delta earned more than $10 million a year on the Atlanta-Dubai route. Delta immediately denounced Emirates’ assertion, saying it has been losing money on the route for the past two years.

Alaska Airlines has added Costa Rica to its route network. The carrier this week started flying from Los Angeles to both San Jose and Liberia, Costa Rica, offering four flights a week on each route with 737-800s.

According to Airlineroute.net, which tracks carriers’ schedule filings, Lufthansa will not resume seasonal Chicago-Dusseldorf flights on March 27 as previously planned. However, on the same date the German carrier will switch from an A330-300 to a much larger A340-600 on its Newark-Dusseldorf route, increasing capacity by about 50 percent.

Editor Chris McGinnis

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